Innovation Hub Expands Accelerator to Serve More Social Entrepreneurs in New Orleans

Propeller: A Force for Social Innovation has announced its restructuring the core program to better serve entrepreneurs. The Social Impact Accelerator now hopes to serve twice as many social entrepreneurs in the New Orleans area.

Propeller’s social innovation hub will now serve twice as many social entrepreneurs through its expanded programming.

“Propeller’s vision is to build a critical mass of entrepreneurs tackling key challenges from multiple angles,” says Propeller Executive Director, Andrea Chen. “We have shown that collaboration is essential to drive progress, and the more entrepreneurs we have working together, the faster and more effectively we can create measurable impact.”

The new two-track programming will support entrepreneurs throughout the entire startup lifecycle, from idea stage to beta to growth, and provide more issue-specific, tailored resources for ventures.

First, Propeller is seeking applicants for its three-month Startup Accelerator, with an emphasis on innovative ideas to address food security, educational equity (ages 0-24), healthcare, and water management. Up to 10 early-stage entrepreneurs will be selected for each sector.

The Startup Accelerator will be followed by a five-month Growth Accelerator, that will select 15-20 ventures with proven viable business models to help them scale.

“By introducing this two track program, Propeller is truly upping its game as it helps entrepreneurs to successfully bring their ideas to reality,” says Mike Eckert, who will lead the Water Sector as Lead Mentor. “I look forward to participating in this next level of Propeller’s evolution as a business incubator, and encourage entrepreneurs with ideas and solutions related to water and coastal erosion problems to take advantage of this program. Very few programs dedicated to water like this one exist in the USA.”